Ivan Provorov
In two straight games, the Flyers have not been close to competitive and played atrocious defense, certainly alarming signs with more divisional games still to come.
Perhaps the Islanders slept through the first shift of the game, giving up the puck on a turnover and the glorious chance for Voracek to put the Flyers in front. From there, nothing was easy for the Flyers offensively and the Islanders gave them a taste of their own medicine with physical play and a tenacious forecheck.
Less than 24 hours after a five-goal third period and 7-4 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Flyers get back on the ice and hit the road to face the New York Islanders.
It wasn’t a five-goal rally from down 4-0, but the Flyers’ third-period performance, scoring five goals in the final 10 minutes of the game, helped change the course in a game that would have had a very different result a year ago.
Kevin Hayes forced a turnover and scored on a breakaway to give the Flyers a 5-4 lead with 5:36 remaining in the third. An empty-net goal and power-play goal in the final minute followed, and the Flyers scored five goals in the third period to claim a 7-4 win over the Blue Jackets on Saturday night at Wells Fargo Center for their third straight win.
The Flyers get back to Eastern Conference play, opening a stretch of 14 straight games against Eastern Conference opponents starting with the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday night at 7 p.m.
The season series between the Flyers and Blackhawks will wrap on Thursday night as the Flyers look to build on Monday’s win.
A four-goal second matched the production from the previous two games for the Flyers, ironically in a period that Alain Vigneault called the team’s worst of the last eight. Observations from the Flyers win over the Golden Knights.
The Flyers took any issues they had finishing and put them to rest for the night on Monday, handily defeating the Vegas Golden Knights, 6-2, at Wells Fargo Center to snap a four-game losing streak.
Monday’s game provides another chance to right the ship, and there will be two new faces in the lineup trying to provide a spark. 19-year-old Joel Farabee makes his NHL debut and Mikhail Vorobyev joins the lineup as well in a tough test for the Flyers against the Vegas Golden Knights.
